the cool: balloon invasion by charles Pétillon

The “Invasions de Ballons” is the latest series by French photographer and artistCharles Pétillon. ‘Invasions’ brings the balloons to retrofuturistic architecture designed in the late ’70s and early ’80s to examine our visions of the future and how quickly they become obsolete. Invasions is an army of white globes bursting out of buildings and structures. ‘CO2’ represents the scars we leave upon the world with our lust for objects like cars. The artist sees the balloons as a way to visualize each of these ways in which we thoughtlessly proliferate, invade or evolve.

Maison de la Photographie, where his photo series will be exhibited from February 20 to March 22, describes Pétillon’s work as a “dialogue between the photographer and space” and “fragments of a reality without limits”. “Each balloon has its own dimensions and yet is part of a giant but fragile composition. This fragility is represented by contrasting materials and also the whiteness of the balloons. All details of these installations will eventually disappear becoming nothing more than a simple form.”, Pettilon explains on his website.